About St. Mary · Aberdeen, Washington
St. Mary Parish is the historic Catholic parish of Aberdeen, Washington, in the heart of Grays Harbor County, founded in 1885 as SS. Aegidius and Mary Catholic Church at the request of Bishop Aegidius Junger of the Diocese of Nesqually. Today it serves as the regional hub for the Catholic parishes of Western Grays Harbor, with a regional office on its grounds, a parish school dating to 1926, and a Spanish-language Mass ministry for the surrounding communities. The parish is led by Fr. Michael Barbarossa as Regional Pastor and Fr. Maximiliano A. Muñoz as Parochial Vicar, and belongs to the Archdiocese of Seattle's South Sound Deanery as part of Parish Family 48 under Partners in the Gospel.
- Established
- 1885
- Patron
- Blessed Virgin Mary (originally co-patrons St. Aegidius and the Blessed Virgin Mary)
- Rector
- Rev. Michael Barbarossa (Regional Pastor)
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of Seattle (South Sound Deanery, Parish Family 48 under Partners in the Gospel)
Why belong here
St. Mary is the historic Catholic heart of Grays Harbor — a 140-year-old parish that anchors an entire regional family of seven Catholic communities across the county. Visitors and parishioners can worship in both English and Spanish (including a weekly Sunday Mass in Spanish and a bilingual First Friday Mass), send their children to St. Mary School, an Archdiocese of Seattle Catholic elementary school serving preschool through 8th grade, and serve through long-standing liturgical ministries (Eucharistic Minister, lector, sacristan, usher, choir, organist/pianist) or outreach such as the Tuesday Sack Lunch Program, run in collaboration with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. As the parish of the regional office, St. Mary is also the practical one-stop hub for Catholic life on the Harbor.
Mass times at St. Mary
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Sunday at 8:15 a.m.
- Wednesday at 8:30 a.m.
- Thursday at 6:00 p.m.
Adoration times
- Thursday 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. (St. Mary)
History of St. Mary Parish
Founded in 1885 as SS. Aegidius and Mary Catholic Church at the request of Bishop Aegidius Junger of the Diocese of Nesqually, St. Mary is the oldest Catholic parish in Grays Harbor County. The original church was lost to fire in 1891 and rebuilt on the same lot where the rectory still stands today; the present church building was begun in 1911 and extensively renovated in 1967–68, increasing seating capacity to 600. In 1987 the parish began building its present parish center, completed at a cost of just over one million dollars.
- 1885: Parish founded as SS. Aegidius and Mary Catholic Church
- 1891: Original church destroyed by fire; rebuilt the same year along with a new hospital, convent and academy
- 1911: Construction begins on the present church building
- 1967–68: Major renovation of the church; seating increased to 600
- 1987: Construction begins on the parish center (completed at ~$1 million)
Parish Ministries & Liturgical Roles
St. Mary and the Grays Harbor Catholic parishes invite registered parishioners in good standing to share their gifts through liturgical and outreach ministries. Ministers must be registered and have received the sacraments necessary to be in good standing with the Church.
- Eucharistic Minister — arrive 15 minutes before Mass, prayerfully prepared
- Lector / Reader — arrive 20 minutes before Mass, having reviewed the readings
- Sacristan — arrive 1 hour before Mass to prepare the altar and church
- Usher — arrive 30 minutes before Mass to greet, seat, and take up the collection
- Music Ministry — piano and organ players especially needed
- Photography — special events and reception of the sacraments
- Hispanic Ministry — Perla Estrada
- Liturgy & Religious Education — Jacob Hayden
- Prison Ministry — Karin Ciani
- Sack Lunch Program (outreach to the hungry and homeless)
Outreach: Sack Lunch Program
St. Mary's partners with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints to prepare and serve sack lunches to neighbors facing hunger and homelessness on the Harbor. St. Mary prepares and serves every Tuesday; the Mormon community covers Thursdays. The parish welcomes time (meal prep and serving), talent (cooking, organizing, outreach, prayer), and treasure (non-perishable food and financial gifts).
- Sack lunches served Tuesdays (St. Mary) and Thursdays (LDS partners)
- Coordinator: Joshua Roberts — (360) 842-2557
- Volunteers and donations of non-perishable food and funds welcome
St. Mary School
St. Mary School is a preschool-through-8th-grade Catholic elementary school in the Archdiocese of Seattle and a ministry of St. Mary Parish and the surrounding Grays Harbor parishes. The school traces its roots to St. Rose Academy, founded in 1890 by five Dominican Sisters from New York, and to the present school building opened in March 1926. Since the 1995 clustering of Grays Harbor parishes it has operated as a regional school, drawing students from across Western Grays Harbor County.
- Preschool through 8th grade, ~150 students, 15:1 student-teacher ratio
- Mid-8th-grade full middle-school model adopted in 2015
- Programs include Drama Club, Middle School Electives (Sculpture, Sewing, Debate, Yearbook, iMovie, Advanced Science Lab), Student Council
- Pre-K and 3- and 4-year-old preschool programs added in 1996–97
- Tuition assistance via the Mary Drake Scholarship Fund and an endowment
- Friends of St. Mary School — annual alumni outreach
- Contact: (360) 532-1230 · [email protected] · saintmaryschool.org
History of St. Mary School
The school's story begins on September 22, 1890, when 30 students walked into the new St. Rose Academy in Aberdeen, opened by five sisters from Holy Rosary Convent in New York at the request of Bishop Aegidius Junger. Those sisters — who became the nucleus of the Dominican Sisters of Edmonds — also ran the harbor's Catholic hospital and convent. By the mid-1920s, Father Michael O'Donnell commissioned architect C. Frank Mahon to design a larger, concrete, fireproof eight-classroom building; St. Mary School opened officially in March 1926. Father Charles E. Kelly led a major renovation in 1961, and in 1995 the school became a regional Catholic school supported by the parishes of Western Grays Harbor.
- 1890: St. Rose Academy opens with 30 students under five Dominican Sisters from New York
- 1926: St. Mary School opens (architect C. Frank Mahon, $65,000) replacing St. Rose Academy
- 1961: Fr. Charles E. Kelly leads major renovation of the school building
- 1995: Parishes of Western Grays Harbor cluster; school becomes regional
- 1996–97: Pre-K and preschool programs added
- 2015: 6th–8th grade converted to full middle-school model
Hispanic Ministry
St. Mary Parish is the principal center of Hispanic Catholic life on the Harbor, offering a weekly Sunday Mass in Spanish, a Thursday evening Spanish Mass, and a bilingual First Friday Mass. Hispanic Ministry is coordinated by Perla Estrada through the regional office.
- Misa en Español — Domingo 1:00 p.m.
- Misa en Español — Jueves 7:00 p.m.
- Primera Viernes — 7:00 p.m. (Bilingüe)
- Hispanic Ministry contact: Perla Estrada, 360-532-8300 x109
Pastoral & Regional Staff
Because St. Mary hosts the regional office of the Grays Harbor Catholic parishes, it is staffed by both the parish clergy and the regional pastoral team. The Regional Pastor oversees all the parishes of Grays Harbor County, supported by a Parochial Vicar and a team of lay staff who coordinate administration, communications, faith formation, Hispanic ministry, the school, and prison ministry.
- Rev. Michael Barbarossa — Regional Pastor
- Rev. Maximiliano A. Muñoz — Parochial Vicar (joined the parishes of Grays Harbor July 1, 2025)
- Theresa Wright — Regional Pastoral Assistant for Administration
- Carrie Marlow — School Principal
- Stephanie Weakley — Administrative Assistant
- Gloria Blackman — Cemetery Coordinator / Admin Assistant (St. Joseph/St. John)
- Laura Sapien — Regional Communications Coordinator / Receptionist & Bulletin Editor
- Leticia Meza — Regional Bookkeeper
- Perla Estrada — Regional Hispanic Ministry
- Jacob Hayden — Regional Liturgy and Religious Education
- Karin Ciani — Prison Ministry
Parish Family 48 (Partners in the Gospel)
In 2024, as part of the Archdiocese of Seattle's Partners in the Gospel strategic pastoral planning process, the seven Catholic parishes and missions of Grays Harbor County were grouped together as Parish Family 48 under a single pastor. St. Mary, Aberdeen, was named the lead parish, with St. Paul, Westport, served as its mission church.
- St. Mary, Aberdeen (lead parish)
- St. Paul, Westport — mission of St. Mary
- St. Joseph, Elma
- St. Jerome, Ocean Shores
- St. John, Montesano
- Our Lady of Good Help, Hoquiam
- Our Lady of the Olympics, Amanda Park
Visit, Register & Contact
Parish registration is handled through the regional office located on the St. Mary campus. Mass schedules, bulletins, and other eDocuments are posted to the Grays Harbor Catholic website.
- Address: 306 E. Third Street, Aberdeen, WA 98520
- Phone: 360-532-8300 · Fax: 360-538-9987
- Email: [email protected] (parish) · [email protected] (office)
- Website: ghcatholic.org
- Office hours: Mon–Thu 9:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m. and 1:00–4:00 p.m.; Fri 9:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.